Which blepfx Plugins Are Free vs. Paid, and How to Choose

blepfx currently lists five plugins: two paid and three free. prisma (a chromatic manipulator) and spectra (a morphing engine) are priced at $25+ each. filtrr (a nonlinear ladder filter), crunchrr (a digital degrader), and destruqtor (a creative distortion) are free. If you want to evaluate the developer's sound before spending anything, the three free plugins are the place to start — two of them (crunchrr, destruqtor) cover the same creative-destruction territory as the paid options, just from a different angle.

Free vs. paid at a glance

The "$25+" notation means the listed figure is a starting point, not a fixed price — the site does not break down what the "+" covers (editions, tiers, or add-ons). Treat $25 as the floor when budgeting, and check the product page for the actual figure at purchase time.

How to choose based on what you're trying to do

The five plugins split roughly into two jobs: pitch/harmony work (prisma, spectra) and tone/character work (filtrr, crunchrr, destruqtor).

If you work with pitch, chords, or texture

• prisma — chromatic manipulator. Reach for this when you want to reshape material along the chromatic scale rather than just shift it. Useful for harmonic re-coloring, generating alternate chord tones, or turning a clean melodic line into something harmonically ambiguous.
• spectra — morphing engine. Reach for this when you want one sound to gradually become another, or when you want a static source to evolve over time. Morphing engines are typically used for pads, transitions, and sound design where the movement is the point.

These two are the paid ones, and they're also the two that do something the free set doesn't attempt. If your work is mostly harmonic or spectral, the paid tier is where the distinctive tools live.

If you work with tone, grit, or degradation

• filtrr — nonlinear ladder filter. A filter with character rather than a clean surgical EQ. Use it for movement, resonance, and coloration on synths, drums, or buses.
• crunchrr — digital degrader. For bitcrush-style artifacts, aliasing, and lo-fi texture. Good on drums, loops, and anything you want to sound like it's been through a bad converter.
• destruqtor — creative distortion. Distortion intended as a sound-design tool, not a subtle saturator. Use it to destroy and rebuild a signal rather than gently warm it.

All three are free, and they overlap in spirit — all three are about adding damage or character. That makes them a low-risk way to learn whether this developer's aesthetic matches yours.

A practical way to decide

1. Download the three free plugins first. filtrr, crunchrr, and destruqtor cost nothing, so there's no reason to buy before trying. They also tell you how the developer voices filters and distortion, which is a reasonable proxy for whether you'll like the paid tools.
2. Identify which job you actually have. If your problem is "this chord progression is boring," that's prisma/spectra territory. If it's "this sound is too clean," the free set already covers it.
3. Only pay if the free set leaves a specific gap. The paid plugins are the ones doing chromatic manipulation and morphing. If you don't currently need those, the free three may be all you need.
4. Confirm the price before buying. The site shows $25+ for both paid plugins; the exact amount and what the "+" includes isn't specified in the listing, so verify on the product page.

Common sticking points

• "$25+" is not a final price. Don't assume $25 is what you'll pay. The listing gives a starting figure only.
• Free doesn't mean limited-feature demo. The site presents filtrr, crunchrr, and destruqtor as free plugins, not trials of paid ones — they're separate products, not cut-down versions of prisma or spectra.
• The free plugins aren't a substitute for the paid ones. They cover different ground. If you need chromatic manipulation or morphing, none of the free three will do that job.
• No pricing or payment details are given beyond the $25+ figures. The listing doesn't state accepted payment methods, licensing terms, or refund policy — check the site's FAQ and terms of service pages directly before purchasing.

If you're new to blepfx, start with the free tier, decide whether the character suits your work, and only then consider prisma or spectra for the pitch and morphing tasks the free set can't handle.